24 top-10 finishes, including NAIA 400 qualifying mark

CLINTON, Mississippi — Ariane Williams produced an NAIA B-qualifying time in the women's 400-meter dash Friday and had one of 24 top-10 finishes for Xavier University of Louisiana in the Mike McMillan Invitational track and field meet at Mississippi College.
     
Williams' time was 57 seconds flat, and the sophomore from Gonzales, La. — in her first season at XULA after transferring from Southeastern Louisiana — finished second out of 24 runners. Williams finished less than half a second behind Lakeia Hill of Hinds Community College.
     
Williams qualified for nationals two weeks ago in the 1,600 relay. The NAIA's national meet will be May 25-27 at Gulf Shores, Ala.
     
The Gold Nuggets also got second-place finishes from freshmen Taylor Price in the 5,000 (19:48.26) and Taylor Ducros in the javelin (33.59 meters / 110 feet, 2 inches) It was the first collegiate meet for Ducros, who also plays volleyball for XULA.

Maliya Vaughan was third in the 1,500 with a PR of 5:05, and she was eighth in the 800 (2:31.18). Janelle Jones was seventh in the 400 with a PR of 59.35. In the 100, Martina Wright ran a PR and XULA's best time of the season (12.47), and teammate Alexis Milton was three-hundredths of a second behind her.
     
For the XULA men, freshman Khalil Gallien had PRs in the 110 hurdles (15.17, sixth place) and 400 hurdles (1:00.48, fourth place).
     
The Gold Nuggets and Gold Rush will travel to Alabama next Friday for the University of Mobile Invitational, which will start at 11 a.m.
     
Here are all XULA results from the Mike McMillan Invitational:

Women
     100:  Martina Wright, 14th in 12.47; Alexis Milton, 15th in 12.50; Justyce Riggs, 27th in 13.51; Katelyn McMorris, 28th in 13.69
     200:  Ry-Anne Riley, 5th in 25.40; Ariane Williams, 7th in 25.59; Martina Wright, 16th in 26.34
     400:  Ariane Williams, 2nd in 57.00; Janelle Jones, 7th in 59.35; Tramaine Shannon, 10th in 1:00.76
     800:  Brianna Pace, 4th in 2:22.55; Maliya Vaughan, 8th in 2:31.18; Carlie Calais, 10th in 2:34.87
     1,500:  Maliya Vaughan, 3rd in 5:05.00; Brianna Pace, 7th in 5:15.47; Taylor Price, 12th in 5:31.57
     5,000:  Taylor Price, 2nd in 19:48.26; Dionysia Love, 6th in 20:39.18
     400 Relay:  Martina Wright, Alexis Milton, Janelle Jones, Justyce Riggs, 4th in 48.65
     1,600 Relay:  Alexis Milton, Chinyere Jones, Janelle Jones, Brianna Pace, 6th in 4:06.32
     Long Jump:  Ry-Anne Riley, 7th in 5.41 meters (17 feet, 9 inches); Ireyon Keith, 9th in 5.30 meters (17 feet, 4 3/4 inches); Justyce Riggs, 13th in 5.00 meters (16 feet, 5 inches); Dorian Hill, 16th in 4.79 meters (15 feet, 8 3/4 inches)
     Shot Put:  Tamia Scott, 25th in 8.00 meters (26 feet, 3 inches)
     Javelin:  Taylor Ducros, 2nd in 33.59 metere (110 feet, 2 inches); Tamia Scott, 4th in 32.21 meters (105 feet, 8 inches)

Men
     100:  Joseph Moses III, 19th in 11.18; Treshunn Miliner, 20th in 11.18
     200:  Treshunn Miliner, 24th in 22.67; Aaron Grundy, 41st in 23.66
     400:  Aaron Grundy, 30th in 52.47
     800:  Oji Wells, 9th in 2:03.06; Ammiel Williams, 11th in 2:05.49
     1,500:  Ammiel Williams, 18th in 4:44.06; Darrick Williams, 24th in 5:35.75
     5,000:  Darrick Williams, 10th in 21:02.51
     110 Hurdles:  Khalil Gallien, 6th in 15.17
     400 Hurdles:  Khalil Gallien, 4th in 1:00.48
     1,600 Hurdles:  Khalil Gallien, Ammiel Williams, Aaron Grundy, Oji Wells, 9th in 3:38.35
     High Jump:  Aaron Grundy, 10th in 1.75 meters (5 feet, 8 3/4 inches)

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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JSU Tiger offense starting to take shape

JACKSON, Mississippi -- The inability to move the ball was JSU’s Achilles heel in SWAC play last year, but offensive coordinator Chad Germany thinks the Tigers are going to turn that around in 2017.

Jackson State ranked eighth in the SWAC in both scoring offense (18.5 points a game) and total offense (308.5 yards). They have an infusion of youth coming in the fall from the latest signing class, but even without those players, there’s reason for optimism.

The Tiger offensive line is gelling around returning starters Vincent Hunter and Brandon McCoy, and Jordan Johnson is far from the only playmaker in the JSU backfield. Carle Ollie leads a young, talented group of receivers.

The trick, Germany said Friday, is to be as consistent as possible.

“The progress is coming at a turtle’s pace, but it’s coming,” Germany said. “Our continuity is one of the most important things, and we have that. Our quarterbacks are understanding what we want to do, and we’re really starting to gel as a unit.”

And while JSU’s four quarterbacks are getting closer by spending time in the film room, the competition among them is heating up on the field.

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9 are March recipients of GCAC Player of Week awards

NEW ORLEANS — Nine Xavier University of Louisiana student-athletes earned a collective 13 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week awards in March. They are:

     •  Khalil Gallien (freshman from Detroit / Bloomfield Hills High School), men's track, Feb. 27-March 5 and March 6-12 . . . Began XULA career with a fifth in the 110-meter hurdles (15.32 seconds) and a 10th in the 400 hurdles March 3 at the Tulane Early Bird Twilight meet . . . Then placed eighth in the 110 hurdles and 15th in the 400 hurdles the following week at the McNeese Cowboy Relays.

     •  Charlene Goreau (sophomore, Toulouse, France / Raymond Naves School), women's tennis, Feb. 27-March 5 and March 13-19 . . . Won in singles and doubles Feb. 27 against then-NAIA No. 4 Brenau . . . Did the same March 22 at NAIA No. 22 St. Thomas (Fla.) to help the Gold Nuggets win 9-0 on the road.

     •  Antoine Richard (freshman, Laval, Quebec / Le Tremplin School), men's tennis, Feb. 27-March 5 and March 20-26 . . . Won in singles and doubles March 3 at NAIA No. 6 William Carey to lead the Gold Rush to a dual-match victory on the road . . . Earned singles and doubles victories to help the Rush win again March 22 at home against Ouachita Baptist, the No. 39 team in NCAA Division II.

     •  Tamia Scott (freshman, Lafayette, La, / Carencro High School), women's field, Feb. 27-March 5 and March 13-19 . . . Fourth place in the javelin at the Tulane meet in her collegiate debut, then placed seventh with a season-best throw of 110 feet, 6 inches March 17 at the Emory Invitational.

     •  Keairez Coleman (sophomore, Harrisville, Miss. / Mendenhall High School), men's field, March 13-19 . . . Scored the only Gold Rush points of the Emory Invitational when he triple-jumped a season-best 44 feet, 9 1/2 inches.

     •  Catalin Fifea (junior, Bucharest, Romania / General School No. 31), men's tennis, March 13-19 . . . Pair of doubles and singles victories on the road against ASA Miami and St. Thomas. ASA Miami is ranked second in the nation among two-year schools.

     •  Ry-Anne Riley (freshman, New Orleans / Lusher Charter High School), women's track, Feb. 27-March 5 . . . In her collegiate debut, Riley posted a pair of top-3 finishes (300 dash, 400 relay) at the Tulane meet.

     •  Maliya Vaughan (sophomore, Elk Grove, Calif. / West Campus High School), women's track, March 6-12 . . . Seventh in the 1,500 at McNeese in a career-best 5:07.42 . . . Helped XULA place third in the 3,200 relay.

     •  Ariane Williams (sophomore, Gonzales, La. / East Ascension High School), women's track, March 13-19 . . . Produced three top-5 finishes at the Emory Invitational, including an NAIA A-qualifying time of 3:53.83 in the 1,600 relay. That mark ranks fourth in the NAIA this season.

XULA men's and women's track will compete Friday in the Mike McMillan Invitational at Mississippi College in Clinton, Miss. XULA women's tennis will travel to Alexandria, La., for Saturday duals against LSU-Alexandria at 9 a.m. and Grambling at 1 p.m. Next for XULA men's tennis will be a noon dual April 8 at Jackson State.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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No. 2 Gold Rush make 52nd straight top-10 appearance

NEW ORLEANS — You've heard this before. Xavier University of Louisiana is No. 2 in the NAIA Men's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 Poll.
     
It's the sixth consecutive time that the Gold Rush (8-3) are second. The XULA men have won eight of their last nine dual matches; the lone blemish was 5-0 Feb. 19 against Georgia Gwinnett, which Tuesday earned its 24th consecutive unanimous No. 1 ranking.
     
Since the previous poll, the Gold Rush won 8-1 at then-NAIA No. 19 St. Thomas (Fla.) and 5-2 at home against Ouachita Baptist, No. 39 in NCAA Division II.
     
The next Gold Rush dual match will start at noon April 8 at NCAA Division I Jackson State. The next home appearance will be April 13 at 11 a.m. against NAIA No. 6 William Carey at XULA Tennis Center.
     
The Gold Rush active poll streaks:
     •  82 consecutive appearances in the top 25 . . . streak began April 4, 2007.
     •  73 consecutive appearances in the top 20 . . . streak began April 30, 2008.
     •  58 consecutive appearances in the top 15 . . . streak began Feb. 1, 2011.
     •  52 consecutive appearances in the top 10 . . . streak began May 3, 2011.
     •  14 consecutive appearances in the top 5 . . . streak began Jan. 26, 2016.
     •  12 consecutive appearances in the top 3 . . . streak began March 1, 2016.
     •  6 consecutive appearances in the top 2 . . . streak began May 25, 2016.

NAIA Men's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 Poll (first-place votes in parentheses — records through March 26) Rank Team Record Points Last 1 Georgia Gwinnett (12) 18-0 312 1 2 XULA 8-3 302 2 3 Keiser 15-3 291 3 4 Northwestern Ohio 12-0 283 5 5 Lindsey Wilson 9-5 272 4 6 William Carey 9-3 262 6 7 Arizona Christian 11-8 250 7 8 William Woods 6-4 235 10 9 Campbellsville 7-3 229 8 10 Cardinal Stritch 5-3 226 9 11 Mobile 16-1 217 11 12 Westmont 5-6 200 12 13 San Diego Christian 4-6 190 13 14 Coastal Georgia 11-5 185 14 15 Reinhardt 8-5 161 16 16 Middle Georgia 9-6 156 18 17 Aquinas 10-3 154 17 18 Tennessee Wesleyan 8-1 123 21 19 Olivet Nazarene 4-5 122 15 20 SCAD Savannah 6-6 110 NR 21 McPherson 1-3 105 20 21 Cornerstone 12-5 105 NR 23 Cumberland 3-2 99 22 24 St. Thomas (Fla.) 5-8 81 19 25 Lewis-Clark State 1-7 75 24 Dropped from rankings:  No. 23 Warner, No. 25 Bethany (Kan.) Others receiving votes:  Warner 54, Asbury 45, Bethany (Kan.) 41, Loyola (N.O.) 20, Lawrence Tech 17, Biola 14, Cumberlands 10, Marian (Ind.) 10, SCAD Atlanta 8 Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director XULAgold.com XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA  twitter.com/xulagold www.facebook.com/xulagold

Nuggets climb again in NAIA — this time to No. 9

NEW ORLEANS — For the first time in four years, Xavier University of Louisiana has climbed in three consecutive NAIA Women's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 polls.
     
The Gold Nuggets (5-6) moved Tuesday from 10th to ninth. The XULA women have improved by 10 spots since the preseason poll, mainly on the strength of four victories against ranked opponents. Their most recent dual match was a 9-0 victory at No. 22 St. Thomas (Fla.) March 17.
     
The 2013 Gold Nuggets climbed six consecutive times in the polls en route to the first-ever NAIA No. 1 ranking by a XULA team in any sport.
     
The ranking is the Gold Nuggets' highest since No. 4 on May 20, 2015. This is the 27th all-time top-10 appearance for XULA's women.
     
Next for XULA will be a pair of duals Saturday at Alexandria (La.) City Courts. The Gold Nuggets will play NAIA No. 13 LSU-Alexandria at 9 a.m. and Grambling of NCAA Division I at 1 p.m. The Gold Nuggets' next home appearance will be April 13 at 11 a.m. against NAIA No. 10 William Carey at XULA Tennis Center.

NAIA Women's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 Poll (first-place votes in parentheses — records through March 26) Rank Team Record Points Last 1 Georgia Gwinnett (14) 18-0 374 1 2 Lindsey Wilson 11-4 362 2 3 SCAD Savannah 10-3 350 3 4 Keiser 11-5 338 4 5 Northwestern Ohio 10-4 303 15 6 William Woods 4-6 300 6 7-tie San Diego Christian 9-2 298 8 7-tie Mobile 18-2 298 7 9 XULA 5-6 279 10 10 William Carey 9-2 264 9 11 Indiana Wesleyan 22-6 257 11 12 Cardinal Stritch 2-8 248 5 13 LSU-Alexandria 10-0 243 12 14 Davenport 5-4 205 tie-13 15 Arizona Christian 11-6 201 16 16 Middle Georgia 12-5 194 18 17 Olivet Nazarene 1-6 170 17 18 Campbellsville 3-4 163 RV 19 SCAD Atlanta 5-6 141 21 20 Cumberlands 8-6 122 RV 21 McPherson 1-2 114 20 22 St. Thomas (Fla.) 4-8 108 22 23 Lewis-Clark State 3-10 104 tie-24 24 Marian (Ind.) 12-7 102 tie-24 25 Coastal Georgia 10-8 99 RV Dropped from rankings:  No. 13 (tie) Brenau, No. 19 Cumberland, No. 23 Reinhardt    Others receiving votes:  Reinhardt 90, Cumberland 84, Brenau 76, Georgetown (Ky.) 47, Tennessee Wesleyan 22, Southwestern (Kan.) 7, Westmont 7, Missouri Valley 5, Huntington 5, Texas Wesleyan 3 Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director XULAgold.com XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA  twitter.com/xulagold www.facebook.com/xulagold

Howard’s James “J-Byrd” Daniel reportedly to transfer – Maybe not!

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Citing an unnamed source on a Twitter post Monday night, ESPN College Basketball Insider Jeff Goodman said Howard senior guard James “J-Byrd” Daniel III, the top scorer in the 2015-16 NCAA Div. I season who played in just two games for the Bison this season, will play his final year of eligibility elsewhere.

Contacted by phone early Tuesday afternoon by the Black College Sports Page, Daniel said he is not necessarily transferring. “Howard is one of my top choices,” said Daniel who is graduating from Howard in May but will have another year of eligibility based on his short stint on the court this season.



“I’m more or less weighing my options,” Daniel said. “Howard is still in consideration.”

As to whether he talked with Goodman, Daniel said “Not me personally. I’ve just put my name out there. I’m open to everything.”

Daniel sustained a high sprain to his left ankle in the preseason that kept him out of all except two games in January for Howard this season. He scored 24 points in a 78-66 home loss to Florida A&M on Jan. 4 and 10 points in a 66-48 loss at Columbia three nights later.Oon

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UMES earns NCAA bowling title berth

PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland -- The University of Maryland Eastern Shore got the news it was waiting for Wednesday as the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Champion bowling team earned a berth to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three years.

“You can say that this is the whole year worth of work that we put in,” said graduate student Thashaina Seraus in a news release. “This is one of the main goals we wanted to accomplish. Of course, USBCs too, but this is the one that we really fought for over three years and finally we made it.”

The Hawks (84-39, 19-5 MEAC) will now travel to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for the NCAA Championships at the Raising Cane’s River Center after being one of the eight teams to receive an invitation.

Eastern Shore hadn’t been to the NCAA Championships since 2014, when it finished third behind Sam Houston State and Nebraska.

The NCAA released the competing teams one-at-a-time on a live webcast. When the eighth and final berth was announced, the screams came and three years’ worth of tension left the room.

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Gold Nuggets record three team bests at Rice meet

Results:  Men   •   Women

HOUSTON, Texas — Xavier University of Louisiana's Tramaine Shannon, Martina Wright and Clarke Allen recorded their team's best marks of 2017 in the women's division of the Rice Victor Lopez Classic track and field meet Saturday.

Shannon finished 10th in the 400-meter dash in a career-best 57.69 seconds. Wright ran the 100 in a career-best 12.57 to finish 25th, and Allen was 41st in the 200 in 26.17.

Brianna Pace placed ninth in the women's 800 in 2:23.88. In men's competition, Khalil Gallien finished 13th in the 110 hurdles in 15.77.

There was no team scoring in the meet, which is the fourth of the season for XULA. Next for the Gold Nuggets and Gold Rush will be the Mississippi College Twilight Invitational at 1 p.m. Friday in Clinton, Miss. The meet replaces the Southern Miss Invitational on the XULA schedule.

Here are all XULA results from the Rice Victor Lopez Classic:

Women
100: Martina Wright, 25th in 12.57 seconds; Alexis Milton, 33rd in 12.73; Justyce Riggs, 36th in 12.82

200: Clarke Allen, 41st in 26.17; Alexis Milton, 42nd in 26.21; Janelle Jones, 49th in 26.44; Martina Wright, 54th in 26.55; Justyce Riggs, 58th in 26.86

400: Tramaine Shannon, 10th in 57.69; Ry-Anne Riley, 15th in 58.35; Ariane Williams, 18th in 58.48; Janelle Jones, 28th in 59.50

800: Brianna Pace, 9th in 2:23.88

400 Relay: Martina Wright, Alexis Milton, Janelle Jones, Justyce Riggs, 12th in 48.33

1,600 Relay: Ry-Anne Riley, Ariane Williams, Tramaine Shannon, Clarke Allen, 10th in 3:57.19

Javelin: Tamia Scott, 24th in 28.79 meters (94 feet, 5 inches)

Men
100: Joseph Moses III, disqualified (false start)

200: Joseph Moses III, 31st in 23.31

110 Hurdles: Khalil Gallien, 13th in 15.77

Long Jump: Keairez Coleman, 29th in 6.25 meters (20 feet, 6 1/4 inches).


Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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TSU's Derrick Griffin on NFL audition: 'It's a dream come true'

HOUSTON, Texas -- In a blink, Derrick Griffin was gone. He adeptly escaped from the grasp of a Prairie View A&M cornerback as he accelerated downfield into a smooth fly pattern.

The former Texas Southern wide receiver easily gathered in a long touchdown catch as a feeble attempt at press coverage was easily broken through by his superior size and athleticism.

Griffin is typically bigger, stronger and faster than anyone he faces on a football field or a basketball court.



Dismissed from the football team after violating team rules last season when he got in an argument with his position coach Griffin opted to declare for the NFL draft and the reigning SWAC Basketball Player of the Year has signed with veteran NFL agent James "Bus" Cook.

On Monday morning on the Rice campus, the physically gifted 6-7, 235-pound former blue-chip Miami and Texas A&M recruit will audition for NFL scouts.

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Arizona Cardinals: DSU Rodney Gunter Has Chance to Shine

GLENDALE, Arizona -- Former 4th round pick Rodney Gunter came to the National Football League from the small school of Delaware State. Weighing in at 6’5″ and 305 pounds, the defensive lineman made the first All-MEAC team in 2013, and the second team All-MEAC team both in 2012 and 2014.

“I wanted to come back and tell somebody I might have seen one of the best defensive line prospects in this draft,” Cardinals’ scout Buckner said.

The selection of Gunter could be attributed to his accolades from the college ranks, such as his aforementioned all-conference selections, or it could be due to his game day statistics. Even with the accolades and statistics, many people, including Gunter himself, were surprised when the Cardinals selected him with their 4th round pick in the 2015 NFL Draft.

As a four year starter, Rodney Gunter produced 188 tackles, 18 sacks, and 37 tackles for loss in college. These stats average out to about 47 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and 9.25 tackles for loss each season. For a down lineman of Gunter’s size, these numbers are impressive, and his pro-day performance explains how he was able to put up those numbers.

During the Delaware State pro day, Gunter posted a 5.00 second 40-yard dash, an astounding time for someone over 300 pounds. He also posted a 27 inch vertical, a number that is only 1.5 inches less than running back Leonard Fournette posted in this year’s combine. This type of athleticism that the defensive lineman has displayed shows flashes of his enormous potential.

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2017 NFL Draft Daily Chicago Bears Target: North Carolina A&T Running Back Tarik Cohen

CHICAGO, Illinois -- Every day we are taking a look at a new 2017 NFL Draft target for the Chicago Bears. We are going deep for today’s prospect, taking a look at North Carolina A&T running back Tarik Cohen.

Cohen was an extremely productive back in college, leaving North Carolina A&T as the leading rusher in the history of the MEAC conference (5,619 yards). Cohen also won the MEAC Offensive Player of the Year award three separate times and was named an FCS All-American in 2016. Simply put, he was a big-time playmaker on the football field.

Cohen is an explosive back who can take it to the house from anywhere on the field. However, he has one huge negative in his game — size. Cohen measured in at 5-6, 179 pounds at the combine. That kind of size typically does not play at the next level. However, Cohen has a special overall skillset that makes him an intriguing late round sleeper to think about.

The Human Joystick
An extremely slippery and elusive runner, Cohen is ridiculously difficult to bring down in open space. He has fantastic short area quickness and elite-level start-and-stop ability. Also, despite being so small, Cohen is a relatively compact runner who has a bit of power behind his pads. He did a great job of bursting through arm tackles in college.

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